Why 2021 will be a huge year for space exploration

2020 laid the foundation for some massive milestones  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ View in browser December 31st, 2020 Welcome to Decrypted, Digital Trends' daily newsletter guiding you through the latest news in the world of tech, with insights from our senior writers. by Georgina Torbet 2020 was a big year for mankind's return to crewed space exploration Mankind hasn't really left Earth since the Apollo 17 mission in 1972. Sure, we've maintained a continuous presence on the International Space Station for two decades, which is its own incredible achievement, but we haven't gone beyond low Earth orbit and onto to the moon or further into our solar system for nearly 50 years.   But this year, we made big strides in returning to crewed space missions and exploring beyond our planet. Leaving the Earth is no easy feat, but we're getting there. Here's a quick recap of the small steps and giant leaps that mankind made in 2020, and that will help us usher in a new era of crewed space exploration in the near future. READ MORE Advertisement by Luke Dormehl The world's first wooden satellite could launch into orbit by 2023 Not content with simply polluting our planet, humankind is also doing a pretty good (or, really, bad) job of polluting space as well. There are thousands of pieces of orbital detritus, many of them old satellites or discarded rocket stages, whizzing around Earth at this moment. These can pose a number of problems, not least if they collide with a functioning satellite or a spacecraft.   Previously Digital Trends has covered cleanup concepts like the European Space Agency's giant space claw project and a gecko-inspired space janitor created by NASA.  Now Japan's Kyoto University and a Japanese company, Sumitomo Forestry, have come up with an innovative new idea that could complement these more environmentally friendly initiatives. Their answer? Wooden satellites that can burn up in the atmosphere when no longer required, avoiding leaving any harmful substances behind by doing so. The approach would also mean no risk of debris raining back down to Earth. READ MORE Advertisement Advertisement by Trevor Mogg NASA showcases best Earth photos taken from ISS in 2020 To celebrate the end of 2020, NASA put together a video featuring its top 20 Earth shots captured by astronauts on the International Space Station (ISS). The breathtaking photos include glorious landscapes and sprawling cities, with others highlighting some of the challenges facing our planet, such as wildfires and extreme weather events.   Check out the dazzling Coopers Creek in southern Australia, and North America's gorgeous Great Lakes snapped during another notoriously snowy winter. Moonrise over the southern Atlantic Ocean is an absolute stunner, as is the image of the sun coming up over Australia. Paris at night dazzles and delights from 250 miles up (just as it does at street level!), while the beautiful reefs of Moindou Bay in New Caledonia will no doubt have you wishing you were there right now. READ MORE by Rob Oster What we're watching: Soul (Disney Plus) One of the best gifts I received this Christmas was being able to stream the latest Pixar film the day it became available in the privacy of my own home. Of course, this gift from Disney+ would have to be judged on the film itself. Luckily, Pixar is back in top form with the enchanting and heartfelt Soul. Pixar's previous effort, the pedestrian Onward, squeaked into theaters just before COVID-19 precautions began shutting them down in March. Instead of waiting for theaters to open more widely, Disney eschewed a run in movie theaters and instead sent Soul directly to its streaming service. Soul continues Pixar's tradition of crafting utterly charming and visually dazzling films that will please children and their parents equally. Like Coco and Up before it, Soul takes on weighty issues like mortality and the afterlife in ways that are thoughtful for more mature viewers while not being intimidating or overly scary for kids. Also like Coco, which focused on the Latino experience via an exploration of the Day of the Dead, Soul refreshingly features a much more diverse cast of characters than your typical animated fare. Its protagonist is a middle-aged Black man, the action is set in the melting pot of New York City, and the score is a varied combination of new age and jazz music. At the heart of Soul is Joe Gardner (voiced by a a funny and poignant Jamie Foxx), a middle school music teacher with aspirations of becoming a successful jazz pianist. On the eve of his long-awaited big break, he has an accident that sends him on his way to the Great Beyond. To simplify the plot for the space restrictions of this column, Joe isn't ready and does everything he can to get back to the mortal realm. What ensues is a wildly inventive and entertaining journey across several dimensions as Joe and his companion, a soul known only as 22 who has stubbornly refused to become a person for ages, scramble to give him another shot at life and learn a lot about living in the process. 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